Born in a Mighty Bad Land: The Violent Man in African American Folklore and Fiction (Blacks in the Diaspora)

The figure of the violent man in the African American imagination has a long history. He can be found in 19th-century bad man ballads like "Stagolee" and "John Hardy," as well as in the black convict recitations that influenced "gangsta" rap. "Born in a Mighty Bad Land" connects this figure with similar characters in African American fiction. Many writers -- McKay and Hurston in the Harlem Renaissance; Wright, Baldwin, and Ellison in the '40s and '50s; Himes in the '50s and '60s -- saw the "bad nigger" as an archetypal figure in the black imagination and psyche. "Blaxploitation" novels in the '70s made him a virtually mythical character. More recently, Mosley, Wideman, and Morrison have presented him as ghetto philosopher and cultural adventurer. Behind the folklore and fiction, many theories have been proposed to explain the source of the bad man's intra-racial violence. Jerry H. Bryant explores all of these elements in a wide-ranging and illuminating look at one of the most misunderstood figures in African American culture. Contents......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 10 Introduction......Page 14 1 The Classic Badman and the Ballad......Page 22 2 Postbellum Violence and Its Causes: “Displaced Rage” in a Preindustrial Culture......Page 32 3 Between the Wars: The Genteel Novel, Counterstereotypes, and Initial Probes......Page 38 4 From the Genteel to the Primitive: The Twenties and Thirties......Page 53 5 The Ghetto Bildungsroman: From the Forties to the Seventies......Page 76 6 Toasts: Tales of the “Bad Nigger”......Page 102 7 Chester Himes: Harlem Absurd......Page 112 8 A “Toast” Novel: Pimps, Hoodlums, and Hit Men......Page 132 9 Walter Mosley and the Violent Men of Watts......Page 155 10 Rap: Going Commercial......Page 167 11 The Badman and the Storyteller: John Edgar Wideman’s Homewood Trilogy......Page 179 12 Toni Morrison: Ulysses, Badmen, and Archetypes—Abandoning Violence......Page 192 Appendix: Analysis of Thirty Prototype Ballads......Page 210 Notes......Page 212 Index......Page 242 About the Author......Page 251 The Classic Badman And The Ballad -- Postbellum Violence And Its Causes : Displaced Rage In A Preindustrial Culture -- Between The Wars : The Genteel Novel, Counterstereotypes, And Initial Probes -- From The Genteel To The Primitive : The Twenties And Thirties -- The Ghetto Bildungsroman : From The Forties To The Seventies -- Toasts : Tales Of The Bad Nigger -- Chester Himes : Harlem Absurd -- A Toast Novel : Pimps, Hoodlums, And Hit Men -- Walter Mosley And The Violent Men Of Watts -- Rap : Going Commercial -- The Badman And The Storyteller : John Edgar Wideman's Homewood Trilogy -- Toni Morrison : Ulysses, Badmen, And Archetypes--abandoning Violence -- Appendix : Analysis Of Thirty Prototype Ballads. Jerry H. Bryant. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. The classic badman and the ballad Postbellum violence and its causes : "displaced rage" in a preindustrial culture Between the wars : the genteel novel, counterstereotypes, and initial probes From the genteel to the primitive : the twenties and thirties The ghetto bildungsroman : from the forties to the seventies Toasts : tales of the "bad nigger" Chester Himes : Harlem absurd A "toast" novel : pimps, hoodlums, and hit men Walter Mosley and the violent men of Watts Rap : going commercial The badman and the storyteller : John Edgar Wideman's homewood trilogy Toni Morrison : Ulysses, badmen, and archetypes abandoning violence Appendix : Analysis of thirty prototype ballads. The figure of the violent man in the African American imagination has a long history. He can be found in 19th-century bad man ballads like "Stagolee" and "John Hardy," as well as in the black convict recitations that influenced "gangsta" rap. This title connects this figure with similar characters in African American fiction. A wide-ranging and illuminating look at one of the most misunderstood figures in African American story and song